Climate change and Japanese Encephalitis

[Tri Bui]

FYI


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Imphal, December 04 2010: An 11 year old Class V student of Catholic
School Canchipur Baby Lalrilu became sick in school and was
hospitalized at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS)
Hospital on June 27.The young girl was struck with high fever and
became unconscious.

Baby Lalrilu, the one and only daughter of a young Rongmei widow Luma,
39 a resident of Langthabal Chingkhong village in Imphal West
district, unfortunately passed away the following day.

The family of the little child including grandmother Pantiguru,70 was
not aware of the cause of her death.

"We still don't know what kind of disease had attacked my grandchild,
she was a very neat and clean child" Pantiguru said.

Both the family and state health officials remained clueless of the
disease until Regional Medical Research Centre, Dibrugarh and National
Centre for Disease Control , New Delhi confirmed that her samples
tested positive of Japanese Encephalitis.

One day earlier another baby girl Fankiya, 6 years, of Lilong Turel
Ahanbi village in Thoubal district also died three days after her
hospitalization due to a similar symptom.

Last year Baby Fankiya's locality had witnessed an outbreak of an
unknown disease.

"One 12 year old girl and a 28 year old young man were hospitalized
due to an unknown disease last year", Fankiya's father Fariduddin,32
recalled.

Even though the victims of the epidemic were mostly young children, a
visit to another victim Haobijam Mema, 45 at Sawombung Wairi-
Khundrakpam village in Imphal East district has indicated that the
disease does not spare adults too as Mema had similar symptoms before
she succumbed to her death.

As many as 34 persons in the state were officially reported to have
died due to Japanese Encephalitis syndrome within a span of just one
month (July).

Most of the victims, including the first three, M Sanathoi of Irengbam
village, Salam Naocha of Loktak Project both from Bishnupur district
and Bharat of Kangpokpiin Senapati district, lived in the periphery of
rice fields.

State Malaria Office however claimed that the actual death toll from
Japanese Encephalitis was just 9 while around 60 suspects were given
symptomatic treatment.

However it is learned that Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) had
claimed 15 lives during the period.

Even if the disease was cyclical in appearance, no Japanese
Encephalitis cases were reported in 2005 and 2006.But state recorded a
single case in 2007 followed by 4 other suspected cases in 2008.Last
year it is learned there were 64 suspected cases, but there was no
report of any casualty unlike in the current year.

The overall situation in the state has shown a substantial increase in
total malaria cases in 2009 as compared with the same period in 2008 .

Interestingly in order to prevent malaria, the state malaria office
had distributed 3,09,718 mosquito nets treated with insecticides last
year.

But it was quite a surprise for the common man, to learnt that the
dreaded epidemic has appeared all of a sudden in a climatically
pleasant place like Manipur.

Kh Meghachandra, Officer in Charge of Meteorological (MET) Office,
Imphal retorted "No! Manipur is no longer a pleasant or cold place, it
would be instructive if one has observed the rainfall pattern of the
state in the last few years" .

Unlike the last decade, summer refuses to end in Manipur and MET
office finds it hard to predict rainfall patterns even in the peak
monsoon months.

Manipur recorded an actual rainfall of 594.7 mm during last year's
monsoon (June to September) against this year's rainfall of 801.1 mm.

In 2008, the state recorded rainfall of 625.3 mm.

Although the state had experienced drought conditions last year, it
seems the state has had sufficient rains this year.

This year's early monsoon helped the germination process of rice
across the 1.68 lakh hectares of cultivable land out of total 1.90
lakh hectares of agricultural land.

However, as a result of the heavy rains most of the rice fields both
in the valley and hills have large quantities of stagnant water which
happens to be the best breeding ground of the culex mosquito which
spreads Japanese Encephalitis.

"So chances of the outbreak of the disease are high if there is an
early monsoon", Y Krishna, Entomologist of the state malaria office
said.

Sharing a similar sentiment, T Kamini, biologist in the State Malaria
Control Office, said the population of the culex mosquito could be
increased when stagnant water submerges paddy plants.

Mosquitos from rice fields might have bitten villagers settled nearby
particularly the children and spread the disease, a senior official at
State Health Services Directorate in Manipur observed.

Climate change would be the major factor for the outbreak of the
epidemic this year.

Apart from global warming and climate change, the mushrooming of
piggery farms both in rural and urban areas is another factor for the
sudden rise of population of culex mosquitos because pigs are one of
it's host animals, according to a senior researcher at the Department
of Bio-technology in Manipur University.

"However no study or investigation has been done so far", he said.

State health officials are yet to look into the impacts of climate
change.

However they've launched a massive vaccination programme with a target
to vaccinate 5.92 lakhs children(below 15 years) with SA14-14-2 in the
state's five districts-Imphal West, East, Thoubal, Bishnupur and
Chandel from October 25 .

A decade back the maximum temperature in Imphal was 30 to 33 degrees
celsius.

It has risen to 35/36 degrees celsius since last year.

"This indicates that Manipur is warming up.

This may directly or indirectly be related with climate change and
global warming", a MET official said.

The culex mosquito that spreads Japanese Encephalitis can not survived
at temperatures below 16 degrees celsius, they are very active in warm
temperatures ranging from 20-30 degrees celsius, biologists further
explained.

These mosquitos becoming active in Manipur means that the climate has
changed.

Global warming affects insects and pests, and mosquitos have migrated
to higher altitudes and have adapted there.

This also poses new health problems.

There will be more and more cases of mosquito related diseases in
places previously never heard of.

Even in the hills of Manipur's Ukhrul district, 84 km north-east of
Imphal people have started to use mosquito nets since the last two
years.

"We've been using it to protect from mosquito bites", AS Haorela, 55
housewife in Ukhrul town said.

"Earlier we never used it.

But now some families have even started to use ceiling fans".

This proves that a hill station such as Ukhrul is no more the cold
place as it used to be.

Global warming is right here.